Disk apparatuses which record data on and/or reproduce data from disk-shaped recording media (hereinafter referred to as disks) such as CD, DVD, etc. are today reduced in size, thickness and weight, suitable for portable use or for equipment on vehicles. In a disk apparatus of this type, the block having a turn table and a spindle motor mounted thereon has a floating structure to be supported by the stationary frame, through vibration-absorbing means so as not to directly transmit vibrations from an external to a disk while recording or reproducing. The block having such a floating structure (i.e., a floating block) includes a lot of mechanisms such as a disk carriage-driving mechanism which carries an inserted disk to a recording/reproducing position and ejects the disk from the recording/reproducing position, a disk-clamping mechanism which holds the disk immovable at the recording/reproducing position, and a disk recording/reproducing mechanism which performs recording or reproducing on the disk at the recording/reproducing position (cf. Patent Literature 1).
According to a disk apparatus disclosed in Patent Literature 1, when a disk is inserted from the disk insertion port, the guide pin slides along the circumference edge of the disk and leads the same, and simultaneously, the micro-switch interlocking with the guide pin outputs a disk detection signal to the control circuit. When this disk detection signal is inputted to the control circuit, the reverse rotation motor is driven to rotate the carriage roller in contact with the surface of the disk so as to carry the disk. At this stage, the clamper of the disk-clamping mechanism provided in the floating block is lifted so as to ensure the upper side space above the turn table as a disk-carrying space. In addition, the floating block is held immovable on the stationary frame by a locking means interlocking with the guide pin, in other words, the floating block is locked. The disk led to a position above the turn table is held by the clamper which is rotated due to a force from a coil spring, and simultaneously, the locking means for the floating block which holds the disk is disengaged. As a result, the floating block is completely released from the locking means, and the floating block is supported by the vibration-absorbing means alone and thus is put in a floating state, so that recording or reproducing on the disk becomes possible.
The disk apparatus thus arranged is of the slot loading type in which the disk is directly inserted into the disk apparatus, carried therein and located at the recording/reproducing position. Such slot loading type disk apparatuses are easy to be reduced in size, thickness and weight, and thus are widely employed for portable use or for equipment on vehicles.
There are disk apparatuses of another type, namely, of tray loading type. In a disk apparatus of tray loading type, a disk is placed on the tray, and the tray with the disk is carried in the disk apparatus and located at a recording/reproducing position. The disk apparatus of this type is preferable in view of the following points. In this disk apparatus, a disk can be placed on the tray only after the tray has been ejected. Therefore, an user is prevented from inserting another disk by mistake, when the former disk is placed at the recording/reproducing position. In addition, the user is prevented from touching the disk on which a recording or reproducing operation is being performed, or another disk is prevented from contacting the former disk during the recording/reproducing operation. However, the disk apparatus of the tray loading type is hard to be reduced in size, thickness and weight, because of the placement of the mechanism for controlling and driving in this system.
Under such circumstances, the slot loading type disk apparatuses have been widely used because of their superior advantages for portable use or for equipment on vehicles, i.e., the ease of reduction in size, thickness and weight thereof.                Patent Literature 1: JP-A-07-320371 (page 4 and FIG. 12)        